TNAG-2621-FCO40-3812-Visits-by-Alastair-Goodlad--Minister-of-State-for-Foreign-an-1992 — Page 51

HONG KONG BACKGROUND BRIEF: MAY 1992

HONG KONG: POLITICAL GROUPINGS

1.

Indigenous political groups or associations are a very recent phenomenon in Hong Kong. They came into being with

the prospect of the first direct elections to LegCo in

September 1991. In recent years a number of small political

groups formed, amalgamated or dissolved, and it has not been

unusual for people to be a member of more than one of these

at the same time.

2.

Out of the various embryo parties and political groups two main new parties emerged: the United Democrats of Hong

Kong (UDHK), often described as "the liberals" and the

Liberal Democratic Federation (LDF), known as the Liberal

Democrats. All the modern political groups are committed to democratic principles. They are distinguished primarily by their general attitude to certain key issues, such as the

pace of democratisation and relations with China. Their

initial membership comes mainly from different areas of the

professional middle classes.

3. The United Democrats of Hong Kong, an amalgamation of various 'liberal' groups under the leadership of the lawyer Martin Lee, was established in April 1990. They tend to favour more radical policies, in particular a faster pace of democratisation, and are overtly critical of China on the issue of human rights. They are regarded as the opposition party, and won a majority of the elected seats in the

September 1991 LegCo elections, with 45% of the vote.

Associated with the UDHK are a number of smaller groups, which maintain a separate identity but are prepared to make electoral agreements not to challenge each others

candidates. They are The Association for Democracy and People's Livelihood (ADPL), established in 1986, which is active at the local, grass roots level, Meeting Point (MP) and the Christian Industrial Committee) (CIC), which all won

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